to most hurricanes The islands of Hawaii, with Kauai as the notable exception, appear to be remarkably immune from direct hurricane hits. The USGS states that "more commonly, near-misses that generate large swell and moderately high winds causing varying degrees of damage are the hallmark of hurricanes passing close to the islands." This has also drawn media attention. One notion is that Hawaii's volcanic peaks slow down or divert storms. A partial source of this idea may be the long list of hurricanes in the above paragraphs that dissipated into tropical storms or depressions upon approaching the islands. Satellite images of Hurricane Flossie's breakup when approaching Hawaii Island fueled this idea. Another example may be Hurricane Felicia which dropped from Category 4 down to a tropical depression with residual winds predicted at only . Tropical Storm Flossie (not to be confused with Hurricane Flossie in 2007) provides still another example. On July 28, 2013, the storm appeared headed for a direct hit to the Big Island, home to Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. Both mountains rise to elevations in excess of 13,000 feet above sea level, and as Flossie approached the island, its track shifted abruptly overnight and assumed a more northerly alignment, heading instead to the island of Maui on July 29. Wind data in particular supports the USGS assertion that hurricane damage has been low on all islands except for Kauai. Data collected by the Western Regional Climate Center show no hurricane-strength winds on any Hawaii Islands with the exception of Kauai. Despite this data, FEMA classified all of Hawaii as being in a "Wind-Borne Debris Region". Effect on homeowner's insurance See also Central Pacific Hurricane Center List of Pacific hurricanes Pacific hurricane season List of wettest tropical cyclones to affect Hawaii Tropical cyclone Kona storm List of Hawaii tornadoes Notes References External links Eastern Pacific hurricane tracks Central Pacific hurricane climatology Central Pacific Hurricane Center archive History of Hurricanes in Hawaii, University of Hawaii Hawaii Hurricanes CPAC Hurricane Widget (current) Lists of tropical cyclones in the United States Hurricanes